October 1, 2018 - March 20, 2019



Philadelphia artist Adam Ledford is known for creating large-scale outline drawings of interiors that are accentuated with his flat-backed terracotta objects. Ledford's installations are visual narratives that depict everyday scenes of 1950s domestic life in suburban America. The mid-20th century was a time when privileged families lived in newly constructed homes in planned neighborhoods with modern conveniences and nuclear family lifestyles. This pivotal time period has been called a "cultural moment."

As with any cultural moment from earliest civilizations to today, it is the utilitarian objects that are studied and preserved to interpret societal values and interests. It is from this archaeological perspective that Ledford creates his interiors. He describes his work as "a portrait of mid-century America through its objects."



Ledford's black-and-white hand sketched diagram of a 1950s kitchen scene is populated with dimensional ceramic objects--a coffee pot placed on a stovetop drawing, dishes aligned with a 2-dimensional cupboard, and a rotary telephone atop an outline of a desk. The ceramics appear to be discovered relics that are added to the drawing over time. Each represents a part of the whole, a puzzle piece that once in its rightful place begins to reveal the lifestyle of a suburban family in 1950s America. 

Visit adamledford.com.